Thursday, August 20, 2009

Jill and I named the company after ourselves … not the most original idea in our business, but certainly fitting for us as we both share the same initials (JS, natch, short for Jill Sandin and Jeff Smith). Our first offices were in a wonderful old 1920’s Spanish building. It was a perfect set-up … we worked there for a couple of years until we’d reached six employees and, bursting out of the seams, moved to our current offices on Melrose Avenue.

And then, just 22 days after starting our fledgling business, 9/11 happened.

Looking back on that period, it’s hard to believe we didn’t implode. Thankfully, we had a few super-steady clients (Jamba Juice, Wilmington Trust, Nike, et al) and we survived, just as we’ve survived the current financial crisis: With a lot of grit, perseverance and excellent work.

PR has changed so much since the summer of ‘01 … the past few years have seen huge swings in our industry. In 2001 social networking meant drinks at the Standard with a client and tweet was something you heard, not did. Print media was still relatively strong and secure and we paid far less attention to the blogosphere than we do today. Still, the principles of our industry have remained the same. I believe – as my colleagues have heard me say countless times – that what we do for our clients is very important. Raising the profile of a product or service to appropriate audiences is key to their survival. It’s not rocket science (never was), but it’s trickier and more complex than what one might think after, say, the 15th viewing of a favorite “Ab Fab” episode (“PR, dahling – PR!”).

So, as we enter our ninth year, we are thankful to our clients (and there have been many) who have given us the opportunity to become better and better at what we do. The ArcLight Cinemas and UNICEF’s of the world, the Patina Restaurant Groups and Coffee Bean and Tea Leafs have all required us to be the very best we can be at what we do. It’s been a great eight years.